The judgment seat of Christ is presented as a vital aspect of the church's hope, where believers will be appraised for their eternal rewards. The sermon outlines the timing, the judge, the judged (every believer), and the severity of this judgment, emphasizing that it will be like a judgment by fire, revealing what has been gained and lost for eternity. It details five specific crowns promised to the faithful: the crown of righteousness for fighting the good fight, the incorruptible crown for steadfastly running the Christian race, the crown of life for enduring temptation, the crown of rejoicing for soul-winning, and the crown of glory for faithful shepherds. The core lesson is that while salvation is by grace through faith, faithfulness in service leads to eternal rewards, urging believers to live for Christ and unsaved listeners to find salvation in Him.
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Beloved radio, friends, we greet you in the precious name of the Lord Jesus Christ. We praise the Lord for the delight that he gives to us when studying his precious word. We would ask the question of my fellow believers, how much do you enjoy and study the word of God? Can you say with Jeremiah the prophet, thy words were found and I did eat them? They were to me the joy and the rejoicing of mine heart, for I'm called by thy name Jeremiah fifteen sixteen. I am sure we can tell on good and sacred authority what you and I learn from God's word will someday mean more to us in time as well as for eternity.
I can assure you my fellow believer that when heaven and earth pass away, when all the books that men have written will be gone forever, and all the benefit of human education will be over for this present scene. Yet the spiritual education and the eternal devotion of the Bible in its duration will go on forevermore. It is certainly proper to have the best secular education that you may need in life below, but it is more important to study a book of which it is written The grass withereth the flower fadeth, but the Word of our God shall stand forever.
Isaiah chapter forty and verse eight. My beloved friend, if you know the Lord as your Savior, study your Bible. If you do not know him, my friend, find him today and begin the greatest education you could ever have, not only for time, but for eternity in studying the Word of God. We continue our study relative to the judgment seat of Christ in its relationship to the hope of the church. This certainly should be included in that blessed hope. For that time when our Lord will reward his servants, we'll be at the judgment seat when he comes again.
We'll consider the time of the judgment. We'll consider the judge who he is, the persons also who will be judged, and that was every individual believer. And also, thank God, the special note we covered concerning the severity of that judgment. It will be a judgment as by fire. Let us not fail to realize, my fellow Christian, that to each one of us, the Lord will reveal what we have gained for eternity and also what we may have lost. Take it in, my beloved fellow believer. It is only in this life we can gain the rewards for the coming glory.
We also noted the standard by which Christ will judge us, and that was according to our faithfulness. Oh, may God make us faithful to Him, and particularly in these perilous days in which we now live. But let me briefly today consider some of the specific rewards that are mentioned in the Scripture to be given The faithful believer. For the faithful believer will be crowned, according to the Word of God. There are rewards to be given. We mention but a few. You may know from your word. There is a crown of righteousness, promised for a faithful and a victorious warrior.
Paul wrote before he departed, I have fought the good fight. I have finished my course. I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me, a crown of righteousness which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me in that day. Second Timothy chapter four, seven and eight. He also added, not to me only, but unto all them also, that love his appearing. Take in the words, read them yourself, study them. Ask God for the grace to win such a crown. Second, there is what is called an incorruptible crown, given to the believer who faithfully and steadfastly runs the Christian race.
Raises the question, my fellow Christian, how are you and I running? Run that ye may obtain, wrote the beloved Apostle Paul, and every man that striveth for the mastery, if tempered in all things. In an earthly race, Paul wrote, men run for a corruptible crown, but We for an incorruptible. It will never fade away. First Corinthians chapter five, verse twenty-five and twenty-six. Oh, my beloved, you need not depend upon running fast, but you should depend upon running steadfast. God help us to do so. Then there is a crown of life spoken of.
Faithful unto death. Be thou faithful unto death. I will give thee a crown of life, wrote, The Lord Jesus in Revelation two-ten. And also the Apostle James has written, Blessed is the man that endures temptation or trials or testings. For when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life which the Lord hath promised of them that love him. James chapter one and verse twelve, the crown of life. For there is the sole winner's crown, which is called the crown of rejoicing. A crown of honor for the unselfish work we do for him, according to First Thessalonians chapter two and verse nineteen.
Well, in that particular scripture, the beloved Apostle Paul rejoiced that in the day of the Lord's coming, he would see his converts right in the presence of the Lord. That would be his crown of rejoicing. Oh, my beloved, may I think for just a moment. Oh, may I think of the privileges. the joy that will be mine. I don't know how many and I don't know how few. But when the Lord comes and in that day of judgment, it will be a deep joy for me to see some of the precious souls I had the privilege and the honor of winning and bringing to Christ. My beloved fellow believer, go after the soul winner's crown.
Fifth, there is the crown of glory in First Peter chapter five in verse four, given to the faithful shepherd who shepherds the flock of God's people. For Peter wrote to the shepherds of God's people a long time ago, to encourage them, saying, When the chief shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fatheth not away. First Peter chapter five and verse four. What a joy to recognize, my fellow believer. Here we have but five crowns, literally mentioned as crowns in the Scripture. But are these not sufficient to realize that the blessed purpose of the judgment seat of Christ for the Church, for His beloved people who in that day will stand before Him, who have been redeemed by the Spirit of God's regenerating power, trusting the Lord Jesus in His precious blood, their service and their work will be reviewed, their life and their testimony will be reviewed.
My fellow believer, May I encourage your heart as well as mine own. Rejoice. There are crowns to win. It does not win our salvation. Our salvation is entirely by grace through faith alone. But I often wonder, and I say it very frankly, I am amazed that the grace of our Lord not only saves us undeserving, how deserving, sinners, but promises to reward us. for what we do for him and he's a servant well serving indeed so my fellow believer we only mention these crowns briefly for the purpose of reminding you and me that the Lord offers special rewards for those who are his for their lives of faithfulness to him let me once again emphasize salvation depends upon faith reward will be given for faithfulness.
Yes, we may indeed acknowledge that as we receive the Lord as our Savior, we receive life. But as His servants, He assures us we shall receive compensation. What a service and what a Savior to serve, not only saving our unworthy souls as He has, but insisting that He will reward us when he comes. Remember those words of Jesus. Behold, I come quickly, and my reward is with me. Revelation chapter twenty-two and verse twelve. So that we particularly emphasize again, the hope of the church also includes not only the rapture and the resurrection of the saints, but the judgment seed of Christ.
When our Lord will appraise his servants, in view of determining their eternal rewards for what they have been and done for him. Well, may we say in the words of a dear old hymn, It pays to serve Jesus. It pays every day. It pays every step of the way. Though the pathway to glory may often be drear, yet you'll be happy each step of the way. but I would speak a word to my unsaved listener who may be hearing this message. My beloved friend, would you not like to be serving the best of all masters?
You can, but before you can, you must find him as your personal Lord and Savior. And when he becomes your Savior, if there is any realization and genuineness about your confession of faith, I know you will also desire to serve him. For when you receive his salvation, without money and without Christ, and Christ is your life, thank God, instead of the wages of sin, which is eternal death, you can have the wages of glory, if Christ is your Savior, and then you serve him for by his grace and for his honor and for his glory.
Oh, what a contrast. Please let me make it clear again. To any unsaved listener, there are wages for sin, and those wages will have to be paid eternally if you do not take Christ as your Savior. Listen to the words, for the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. And when you receive that gift of eternal life, then, praise God, you may and you can begin working to receive not the rewards of sin, but thank God the rewards for serving the blessed Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.
Oh, Father, we pray in the name of the Lord Jesus. Take the truth of thy word. Use it for the blessing of thy dear people in their encouragement and joy. But also we pray for the unsaved. Meet their need by convicting them by the Spirit and bringing them to the Lord Jesus Christ to receive as their Saviour and serve him, the best of all masters, in his precious name we ask. Amen.